Why It’s Important to Pick Up After Your Dog

It's a dirty job, but you really should do it. Picking up your pooch's poop is a part of responsible dog ownership. Besides just being considerate towards others, there are some pretty important reasons why you should always pick up after your pet.

Studies have shown that animal waste, especially from dogs, plays a roll in polluting our waters. Runoff from our cities and towns carries bacteria and nutrients from decaying animal waste into our water systems, where the introduced bacteria can cause illness. The excess amount of nutrients can cause overgrowth of algae in the waters, which can be damaging to the waters' natural inhabitants.

Dog poop left outside can lead to parasite and disease transmission to other pets, and even to wild animals. You all know how much your dog likes to sniff at the droppings of other animals. As gross as it is, some dogs take things a bit further than just a sniff. Contaminated feces can transmit parasites such as roundworms, hookworms, coccidia, and giardia. Parvovirus can be deadly to dogs, and is also transmitted by feces.

Dog poop left outside can also attract unwanted visitors, such as mice, rats, and insects. Feces also contain large numbers of bacteria that can potentially cause illness in humans. Humans can also contract parasites from dog poop.

In many areas, cleaning up after you dog is the law. If caught not scooping, you could be faced with paying a fine. Cleaning up after you pet is just common courtesy. You are the one who decided to get a dog, so you should be the one to take the responsibility to clean up after it. You never know, if you set a good example, other dog owners in your area might also take the intuitive to clean up after their pets too. A cleaner community will make for a healthier environment for both the people and the pets living in it.

Thank you so much for your post! This is a really important topic in our world today. It's vital to know how we can care for our environment. This is our only home, after all. It's also extremely important to be a responsible dog owner. I researched a study that puts runoff from dog waste in the same category as runoff from oil and mines. The excess growth of algae that you mentioned has the potential to prevent people from being able to swim or fish. Imagine living in a world where we can't access water for our leisure purpose because of the damage we've inflicted. Especially from something as simple as scooping up pet waste. I have a blog of my own where I cover this topic as well. If you're interested, feel free to check it out here: http://franchescaspets.weebly.com/blog

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